3 Asian players who can fit into current England ODI side

It’s been about 10 months since England became the No. 1 ODI team in the world. The Eoin Morgan-led side dethroned India from the pole position in the ICC ODI Rankings in May last year. Since then, no team has even come close (maybe India) to dethrone them. They have played some really good and consistent cricket and the results have reflected that.

The 2015 World Cup seems to have come as a blessing in disguise for this Eoin Morgan-led side. After crashing out in the group stages of that tournament, England revamped the way they played white-ball cricket and ODI cricket, in particular. Since April 2015, England have a win percentage of 66.23 in the 50-overs format and a win-loss ratio of 2.43 which is the best among all teams.

The England ODI side is filled with some dynamic players who have proven to be match-winners. Like all teams, they do lack a player or two in certain departments but they’ve covered the bases well and have done exceedingly well. However, here we look at three Asian players who can walk into the current England ODI side.

Here are 3 Asian players who can fit into the current England ODI team:

Virat Kohli

The Indian skipper is arguably the best ODI batsmen in the world at the moment. In fact, he’s been at the top of the tree for quite some time now in limited-overs cricket. Since the start of 2016, Virat Kohli has amassed 3702 runs at a stunning average of 88.14. He has scored 16 hundreds in this period. Since the start of 2018, he has registered just one single-digit score and has redefined consistency in the shorter formats.

Joe Root has also been amongst the runs and is at the third position in the same period with 2725 runs at an average of 63.37. However, he can always drop himself down by one position and accommodate Kohli at 3. With Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes to follow, the batting line-up could take a further intimidating look with the inclusion of Kohli. Moreover, Kohli has a very good record in England. And who wouldn’t love to have the best batsman in the world in their side?

Rashid Khan

There is absolutely no doubt that Afghanistan have taken giant strides in international cricket over the last few years. One of the reasons for their success has been the rise of Rashid Khan. They way the leg-spinner has gone about his business has been remarkable. He became the fastest bowler to reach 100 ODI wickets (in terms of innings).

Rashid has the ability to run through sides and it has resulted in teams giving him a lot more respect and playing him out more often than not. In fact, he’s the No. 1 ODI all-rounder and No. 2 ODI bowler at the moment in the ICC Rankings. Barring Rashid Khan, no bowler has taken more than 100 ODI wickets since the start of 2016.

His overall ODI numbers are simply mind-boggling. In 52 games, he has taken 118 wickets at an average of 14.47, at an economy of 3.90 and a strike-rate of 22.2. England have Adil Rashid who is the second most successful bowler since 2016. However, he has been a tad expensive and has lacked control on occasions.

Moeen Ali has played the role of a spin-bowling all-rounder. However, Rashid Khan could easily fit into the side and can be their strike bowler. Despite scoring big runs, England have tended to leak a lot of runs and Rashid’s inclusion could give more teeth to the bowling attack.

Jasprit Bumrah

If there’s one thing that England lacks in the current ODI setup is a proper out and out fast bowler. A pacer who can bowl at any stage of the game, especially at the death. At the moment, there is no one better than Jasprit Bumrah in the world.

India’s premier pacer has taken 78 wickets in 44 games in his ODI career and since the start of 2016, that’s the second most number of wickets by a pacer in ODIs. He offers control and has the ability to produce breakthroughs at any stage of the game. His ability to nail the yorkers and fox the batsmen at the death with his variations makes him an invaluable asset.

England have a few bowlers who have been consistent but they’ve always been in search of a bowler who can clock high speeds and can bowl well at the death. Hence, Bumrah could easily walk into the current England side.

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